Memories of the Phoenix
by Lady Yuna
Summary: A retelling of the story in FF6 between Locke and Rachel, his lost love (Complete)


It has been many years since I saw her last…alive.  
  
Rachel has been sleeping for many a year now…ten years I believe.  I was not there to be with her when she went away.  I was not there for her…I failed her.  At least that is how I felt when I saw her lying in the old sage's home. She was in a state of suspended animation, dead but not yet passed. Celes and the others were with me, when we stopped to speak to the old crazy man himself.  
  
"I gave her some herbs, yes I did," the eccentric sage said to me, as I gazed down at my true love. "She will never age a day.  She will always remain this lovely." I never thought I would make it back to Kohlingen, my hometown. I never thought I would make it back to see her…  
  
****************  
  
It had been only been a year since my last visit. The world has changed a great deal since the world started to slide into ruin. I decided to look around what was left of the town, and I wanted to get myself reacquainted with the town I left behind. I looked at many of the houses that were empty.  There were fewer people walking the streets than before. There were unattended gardens in parts of town. The town was in decay.  
  
After taking the small tour, I then visited the general store and spoke to Mr. Featherston.  The little bell chimed on the door as I slowly walked in the store. A man of sixty years looked up from his work and greeted me with a huge smile.  
  
"Locke, as I live and breathe, it is good to see you, my boy!" Stepping out from behind his counter, he gave me a hearty handshake. It was a good feeling to get such a greeting from the familiar callused hands.  
  
I smiled in return, "It is good to see you, Mr. Featherston.  I am amazed how much the town has changed.  I did not think…you were still here."  
  
"Ha, it takes more than the world falling apart to get me down." the old man packed his tobacco pipe while thinking to himself, "There have been a lot of people moving out of town in recent years. Even more died when the Light of Judgement came through. Mr. and Mrs. Campbell made it out of here before the changes began. You know, Rachel's parents."  
  
When he mentioned the Campbells, he had my complete attention. "You mean they moved from Kohlingen?" I was truthfully surprised. _Because they left Rachel behind…_  
  
"Rachel's parents left? Why?"  
  
The old man chuckled, "Well, after Rachel's passing, they did not want to have any memories of this town…or you…"  
  
"How long have they been gone?" I inquired, curious.  
  
"They have been gone at least 18 months, a good amount of time before the Light came. I do not know where they went.  They left no information behind."  
  
I was so hurt to hear that, but not surprised, "Yeah, I understand. Well, thanks for everything."  
  
"Wait a minute, young man. I have something for you!"  Old Man Featherston stepped back behind the counter, bent down and pulled a package out.  It was wrapped in brown paper, and it had been under his counter for some time, judging from the amount of dust layering its surface.  
  
"What's this?" I wondered, as he handed it to me.  
  
"Mrs. Campbell told me to give this to you. She said, 'If Locke ever comes back, I know that he would want this.' She never told me what it was, and she only instructed that you have it. It must be something valuable."  
  
"Thanks, Mr. Featherston.  I will take good care of it.  Take care!" I shook his callused hand once more and exited the general store.  I then decided to find a place to open the package.  I thought about Rachel's house.  It was abandoned, but it was still in decent condition.  The house was about 200 yards from the general store. I walked up to the door and tried to open it.   It squeaked loudly as I pushed the door open. I made my way inside and closed the door behind me.  
  
When I walked inside, memories came flooding back to me.  "Oh, Rachel, I have failed you…" I said to the empty house.  I found a desk and chair, off to one wall.  I found a candle on the desk.  After lighting it, I sat down to open the package.  I found a small red book inside the brown paper.  Inside the cover it read:   
  
_Rachel Campbell's Diary: This diary is a recording of all the wondrous times I have spent with my true love, Locke.  I love him more than he could ever know._  
  
I sighed loudly, and then I began skimming through the pages of this old book, to see how many entries were in there.  There were many entries, but many of the pages were blank. I decided to read a few…important posts to both of us.  
  
  
  
**_Friday, April 1_**  
_Dear Diary,  
  
I started dating the most amazing guy yesterday. His name is Locke, and he is a professional treasure hunter. Or so he says. Personally, I think that is a nice way to say THIEF! But looking past his occupation, Locke seems to be a very caring, sweet person. I have known him for years growing up here, but we never really noticed one another. I think that I like him, though. I wonder what my parents will think of him…_  
  
  
  
"I remember that day. She was wearing a simple red and yellow sundress. Her brown hair shined in the sun like a beacon. She was very lovely. If I closed my eyes right now, I could still she her standing here…" I kept reading and remembering.  
  
  
  
**_Monday, April 17_**   
_Dear Diary, _  
  
_Locke and I have been dating for almost two weeks.  He is such a romantic guy. He came to take me on a hiking date, and he brought me beautiful flowers.  It was such a surprise. It was so nice of him to do that. He finally met my parents over the weekend. My mother liked him from the instant she met him.  However, my father was a bit more apprehensive.  Daddy says that Locke is too self-absorbed with his treasure hunting.  He warned me that Locke might hurt me.  I know that Daddy cares, but I love Locke. Daddy just does not understand.  
  
_  
  
I chuckled aloud, "Oh, I remember meeting Rachel's father.  Boy, what a grouch!  He did not trust me whatsoever, no matter how much I tried."  My jovial mood mellowed, and the laughter was replaced with a sigh. "Maybe he knew that I would fail her.  Maybe he always knew…"  
  
  
  
**_Sunday, May 1_**   
_Dear Diary,_  
  
_Locke asked me to marry him!  We have only been going out a month, when he proposed to me last night. It was so sweet how he did it. He asked where I wanted to go on a date, which did not happen all that often.  I told him that I wanted to go to the shore near home.  At that time, I had not been to the beach in years. He then left to "prepare" as he called it.  
  
That night, he put a blindfold on me and told me that everything was going to be a surprise.  We rode a rented chocobo to the shore. It felt strange to ride blind, but I felt secure holding on to Locke.  We arrived at the beach. I could tell, because I heard the waves crashing against the shore.  Locke held my hand and led to me an area some distance from where we dismounted. He sat me down on a soft blanket and removed the blindfold.  In front of me was a candlelight dinner, spread out on the blanket. I was so impressed with all of his effort.  We enjoyed the dinner that he actually cooked!  After eating, we took a walk along the shore and talked.  He then gave me a silk satchel, and inside of it was the most ornate and beautiful ring.  He asked to marry him and I said, "YES!!"  _  
  
_I am so happy!  Now we need to tell…my parents._  
  
  
  
I closed my eyes, and I relived the scene in my mind.  It was a breathtaking evening, and Rachel looked so beautiful, bathed in moonlight.  I fell in love with her on our first date, and I could wait no longer to ask for her hand in marriage. I truly loved then, and I still do…  
  
We had decided to wait one year before marrying.  We thought it was best to wait, because we did not want to foolishly rush into marriage. We never got to get married…everything changed that day…  
  
  
  
**_Saturday, November 6_**   
_Dear Diary,   
  
Today we are going to explore the Phoenix Cave. Locke says that most sought after treasure lies within this place.  I am a bit scared to go there.  It is far from home, and no one has successfully made it out of the cave once the person enters. I am worried that something bad will happen there to us.  I really do not wish to go, but I am doing this for Locke.  He means so much to me and I want to make him happy.  We should be back within one week's time.   
  
This past week, we finally told my parents that we are to be married in six months time.  Mother was so pleased to have Locke in the family. Daddy was skeptical, but he said he was happy for me.  I am not really sure that he is truthful, but we will have a discussion when we return.  
  
  
  
_ That was the last entry in her journal before the accident. The horrible memories came flooding back, like a raging river.  
  
**********  
  
We were searching around in the Phoenix Cave, looking for the most cherished prize – the Phoenix Stone.  We were three days into our expedition when we made it into the heart of the cave.  We found some chests on the opposite side of a narrow bridge.  I crossed quickly and made it safely across to the other side. But Rachel…was on the bridge when there was a tremor in the cave. The ropes on the bridge snapped and she fell into a chasm. I jumped down to rescue her. I never uncovered the Phoenix Stone.  
  
I brought Rachel back home.  She slipped into a coma due to the fall, and she remained unconscious for several months.  I was so mortified by the events, and her parents blamed me for the accident. I explained to them exactly what had occurred, but they did not want to have any part of it.  I convinced them to wait until Rachel awoke to ask her about the event.   Rachel would never lie, and I know she would tell the events with the same accuracy as me.  
  
When Rachel finally awoke, her parents and I were by her side.   She groggily recognized her mother and father.  When she looked at me, she has a look of complete bewilderment on her face.  The only words for me were, "I do not believe have met. I am Rachel, and who might you be?"  
  
I was in shock when she failed to recognize me.  The fall had caused an unusual form of amnesia, where blocks of time were absent, including our time together. I would continue to try to help Rachel regain the memories she had lost, but it was to no avail.  
  
Finally, one day, she came to me, after an argument between her father and I.  She said to me, "Locke, if that is what you call yourself, I truly do not remember you. I have tried everything in my power to recall the events you describe.  The only thing I have that matches to what you say is this ring."    
  
She held out her slender hand to show me the ring that I had given her as a promise of our impending marriage. She removed the ring from her finger and placed it gently in my hand.  "Let me return this to you, for only you know of its real meaning.   I think it is best that we never see each other again.  The only thing that your presence does is anger my father and upset my mother.   It is better this way.  Good luck to you, Locke. Farewell."  
  
With that, she disappeared into her house and out of my life. I knew then that I could never live in Kohlingen again.  I left the town that very day.  I would have never returned, if it were not for a telegram from Mr. Featherston. In his note, he told me that Rachel had fell ill due to a strange virus.  I returned to the town, but I was too late.  Rachel had passed on, before I was able to say goodbye.  She regained all of her memories right before her death. I was told that her last words were, "Tell Locke that I love him."  
  
In a desperate attempt to revive her, I brought Rachel's body to the old sage on the edge of town. I begged the crazy man to bring her back to life. He said all his herbs could do was to keep her in a state of stasis, where she would never age. The sage said that he did not have the power to revive the dead.  
  
I had been back to see the sage and Rachel. I was still carrying a blind hope that he had discovered something that would answer my prayers. I realized that the man was a lunatic, and I was the only one that could fulfill my wish.  
  
After the world was changed, all of us – Terra, Edgar, Celes, and the others – were separated.  I found myself right near the mouth of the Phoenix Cave.  It was destiny that I was landed here, and I was determined to find the Phoenix Stone.  I knew that it had the power to revive Rachel.  When the others had found me, I had just uncovered the Stone's resting place. Due to the shift, the Stone was damaged.  I was fearful that it would not work, but I was willing to try anything.  
  
**********  
  
I came back to reality, looking at the Phoenix Stone, resting on the desk.  I knew why I came home to Kohlingen.  It was time to revive Rachel.  I stood up and, when I lifted the book from the desk, a letter fell out of the pages of the diary. It was written in Rachel's mother's handwriting. Judging from the date on the letter, it was written two years after Rachel's death.  
  
  
_Locke,  
  
I hope that you find this note that I have written.  I scratched this down, without Rachel's father knowing.  I needed to clear up a couple of things that have probably confused you over the years.  First, Rachel regained her memory about three months before her death.  She was often slipping in and out of consciousness.   She asked me to write this down for her before she died.  It toke me two years to write them down.  Forgive me and Rachel's father…we were only doing what was best for Rachel.   
  
Always,  
Anne Marie_  
  
  
The second page of the letter contains a short paragraph, written in Anne Marie's handwriting.  The mood of the words, however, definitely belonged to Rachel.  
  
  
_Locke, I am so sorry that I pushed you away.   I truly did not remember you, because of the amnesia.  This virus I have has given me high fevers and convulsions.  Somewhere within the disease, I regained my memories.  Mamma said that I would call out your nightly, wondering where you were.  I am sure that I will have expired by the time you read my words.  Always know that I loved you and will always you. All my love, Rachel.  
_   
  
The tears were streaming down my weathered face.   Although reading this letter was comforting, I still needed to speak to her, to hear her voice.   I knew that the Phoenix Stone would grant my wish. I put the letter back into the diary, closed the cover, and placed the treasured in my satchel.  I discarded the brown wrapper, blew out the candle, and quietly left the house for the last time.  
  
I wasted no time in walking to the old sage's home.   Clutching the Phoenix Stone in my hands, I met up with the others, including Celes.  We went inside the house.  Nothing had changed in that house since the first day I walked in there, clutching Rachel's limp body to my chest.  A smell of cooked herbs clung to the walls.   The four of us stepped downstairs in the crazed sage's laboratory.  We knew what to expect of the sage, for we had been here before.  
  
In the basement laboratory, the crazed sage greeted us, "Oh ho, hello Locke.  I have been guarding your treasure, yes I have."  The other waited in the doorway, and I turned around and signaled that I needed time for myself.  The others walked back upstairs to wait.  I then proceeded closer to the bed where Rachel lay asleep.  
  
I pulled out the Phoenix Stone and handed it to the sage for his inspection.  His familiar lunatic smile disappeared, "This stone has many deep cracks. This may not work." I would not accept his answer.  I placed the stone next to Rachel's side and waited.  
  
A red glow surrounded Rachel and began to radiate. Beams of light shot out of the Stone, and then it was absorbed into Rachel.   A moment of deafening silence occurred, and then for the first time in ten years, Rachel opened her eyes.  
  
I was so overjoyed to see her alive once again, "Rachel!"  
  
"Oh, Locke, my love.  How happy I am see you," she said groggily.  
  
"Rachel, forgive me for not being there for you when you needed me most," I hung my head in shame.  
  
"Oh, love, I forgave you long ago.  Now you must forgive yourself."  The power of the Stone was slowly beginning to fade, "Locke, my time is short and I must go.   I will always love you, but break the chains that bind your heart. Today I set your heart free. Phoenix, be reborn!"  
  
"Rachel, wait!" I grasped her hand with all my strength for one last time.  
  
"I am always in your heart! Farewell, my love…" With that, the sign of the Phoenix rose over her as she faded from sight.   I watched he lovely hand disappear from my own.   For the first time in many years, I felt as if I was a new person, free of the weight that hindered me.   I left the old sage's house with a renewed sense of life.  
  
I walked outside, and Celes was patiently waiting for me.   I realized on that day that I had someone truly special in Celes.  I had the courage to protect her without the fear of losing her, for she would always be a part of me…. just like Rachel.  
  
"Locke, are you OK?" Celes asked, with concern in her blue eyes.  
  
"Yes, Celes, I couldn't be better. Today I start a new life.  Let's get on the airship!"  I took her hand in mine and we hurried off to the others.  



End file.
